Internal-combustion engine.



N. H. SCHICKEL.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED .DEC. 911L913- Patenied Feb. 22,1916.

Nonm:n'r mscmcxnn or STAMFORD, connnc'ncu'r.

INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 22, 1916.

Application filed December9, 1918. Serial No. 805,486.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, Nonnnn'r H. SoinoKnL, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Stamford, in the county of Fairficld and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Internal- (ombustion Engines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in engines of the internal combustion type designed to be used on motor-cycles and other motor whicles and the general object thereof is to provide a motor of the kind mentioned which will possess features of superior adaptability to the purposes for which it is intended.

A further object of my invention is to obtain a well-poised engine wherein the weight of the flywheel and the parts by which power is transmitted from the motor, all of which are disposed on one side of the central longitudinal axis of the engine, will be balanced in part by the weight of the magneto, which furnishes the ignition current, located on the other side of the central A further object of my invention is to aline the armature shaft of the magneto with the engine shaft and connect the former to be driven by the latter by an automatic compensating device which will at all times insure the proper operation of the magneto even though the alinement is not a perfectly true one.

Another feature of the invention resides in the construction of the flywheel which is preferably made in one piece with the crank pin and the main shaft projecting centrally therefrom.

' An additional object pf my invention is to mount the power shaft so that it will not have to support the weight of the fly-wheel and the transmission parts, but will be free from the influence of every force except the torsional stresses due to the thrust of the engine piston.

A still further object of my invention is to mount a tightening device for the belt which turns the driving wheel or wheels of the motor-cycle or vehicle in such position construction on the engine that it will be part of the construction thereof, without occupying much space or being in the way of the other parts, and at the same time be capable of adjustment from the steering mechanism.

Yet another object of my invention is'to form the crank casing of the engine with separate chambers in which the certain parts and accessories, suchas the fiy-wheel and the magneto, can be conveniently housed, the chambers in question being provided with removable closures, so as to afford ready access thereto.

A still other feature is the provision of a plate serving as a closure for the fly-wheel chamber, and being of sufficient size and strength to serve as a bearing for the power shaft and carry the weight of the flywheel and transmission devices which cause the driving elements of the motorcycle or vehicle to be operated.

Moreover, as my improved engine is preferably of the two-cycle type, I aim to reserve a sufiicient amount of unoccupied space in the crank casin after all the parts are inclosed therein, to serve for the purpose of compressing air to force the fuel charge into the firing chamber.

These and other objects of the invention will appear more fully in the following detailed description taken' in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein the same characters designate the same parts in all the views, and wherein,

Figure l is a section on the line l1 of Fig. '2 showing the lower part of the engine framework and particularly the compensating driving connection for the magneto; and Fig. 2 is a vertical or longitudinal section taken in a plane passing through the aXis of rotation of the power shaft showing the construction of my invention in all its parts.

I have not illustrated the main body of the cylinder, piston, ports, igniter, etc., as these do not form any part of the invention hereinafter claimed and may be of any suitable character well-known to those skilled in the art. They may be and preferably are substantially as shown in my co-pending application, Serial Number 735,464, filed- December 6th, 1912.

In the specific embodiment of my invention, which I have illustrated and which constitutes only one form which the invention may assume, I employ a power cylinder 1, mounted upon a crank casing 2, and in the cylinder 'moves a piston 3, joined by means of a connecting rod 4 to a flywheel 5, and main shaft 6, the flywheel having a crank pin 7 which the end of the rod engages.

The body of the crank case is cylindrical in form and has one end wall 10 which may be substantially in line with the axis of the cylinder 1, the other end being open, and being provided with a plate 11 to close the same. This case has an extension 12, into the outer end of which the cylinder 1 is fitted or to which it may be secured. The crank case proper houses the flywheel 5, which is driven by the piston, and the connecting rod 4 thus normally moves substantially in the plane of the wall or end 10. As the piston reciprocates air is compressed in the crank case and expelled therefrom by Way of a passage 13 formed by part of the side wall of the cylinder 1 and part of the wall of the lateral extension 12 above mentioned.

From the end wall 10 of the crank case projects an axial extension 14:, which is closed at its inner end by a web or partition 15. This web 15 divides the space forming the flywheel and compression chamber in the crank case from a similar chamber in the extension lel which receives the magneto 16 furnishing current to the igniter of the engine. The outer end of the extension 14 is closed by a cover 17, which is removable, like the plate 11, so that access to the flywheel and compression chamber or to the magneto chamber can be had at any time.

It is of course understood that the body of the crank case with the extensions 12 and 11, and the partition 15 will be cast in one piece; or if preferred the partition may be a separate piece and be secured to the inside of the case by any preferred form of v fastening devices. The inner end of the extension 12 merges on one side with the inner end of the extension 11 on the adjacent side of the same, and the crank case so formed makes a compact base or support for the power cylinder when the case is secured to the framework of the motor-cycle, vehicle, or

other support, on which the motor is to be used.

Referring now to the construction of the flywheel and the connections for the same, it will be seen that the wheel 5, shaft 6 and crank pin 7 are also made in one piece, either by casting or forging. The shaft 6 projects out through the plate 11, and the pin 7 is surrounded by a collar 123.v This collar is preferably fixed on the pin, but may be loose if desired. A second collar of larger diameter surrounds the first collar, and the adjacent cylindrical faces of the two collars are grooved to form a raceway for rolling elements 20. These rolling elements are shown in the form of bearing balls, but obviously they may be shaped otherwise as conditions may require. A suitable strap is provided on the end of the rod 4 which encircles the ring 19, and. thus a perfect anti-friction connection between rod 4 and the pin 7 is afforded.

In order to economize space, I form an annular recess 21 in the inside face of the flywheel around the pin 7. This recess has an annular groove in its bottom which receives a wear ring 22. The ring 19 and the strap on the rod 4 which encircles this ring abut against the wear ring 22, and when the latter is worn out it can easily be replaced. This wear ring will of course be made of some suitable soft metal. A suitable nut 23 is screwed upon the outer end of the pin 7 This clearance room, in combination with the unoccupied space at the top of the crank case and at the inner end of the extension 12 makes up the compression chamber of the engine, and the compressed air, as stated above is forced out by the piston on the outstroke through the passage 13.

The shaft 6 projects from the opposite face of the flywheel, and this face is provided with an annular recess 24 concentric vVltll the shaft, and with a dished surface 25. This surface 25 matches with the inner ace of the closure plate 11, which is shaped like a flat cone, and is provided at its center with an annular bearing boss. Into this bearing boss is fitted a tight bushing 28, which extends into the crank case and terminates at its inne end in a flange 29. The shaft 6 passes through this bushing, and surrounding the same and receiving the shaft 6 is a jacket 30 which takes up the wear on I the two parts. The bushing 28 carries the flange 29 and the plate 11, I locate a smaller ring 32. The adjacent annular faces of these two rings are grooved to make a raceway, and into this raceway are placed rolling elements, preferably in the shape of bearingballs 33. A. wear plate 34 is dis- .posed between the rings 31 and 32 and the flywheel is thus snugly housed in the recess 24 and the flywheel hangs on the inner end of the bushing, the whole weight thereof being lifted from the shaft 6. Furthermore,

I the wheel is arranged to fit the body of the crank case and is completely inclosed and ,protected when the plate 11 is bolted in place.

The outer end of the shaft 6.is connected to the transmission devices by which power is communicated to the driving mechanism of the cycle or vehicle; and these transmission devices comprise mainly a belt pulley, so mounted, that, like the flywheel, its Weight is not borne by the shaft 6. This is accomplished by an anti-friction bearing including a ring 36, secured by screw threads or any other means to the outer end of the bushing 28, and held in place by a lock nut or the like indicated at 37. The belt pulley 38, turned by the shaft 6, is fitted to the outer coned end 39 of the shaft 6, and is held thereon by means of a nut 41. Obviously almost any other form of holding device will answer the purpose. The pulley has a recess 42 on its inner face, which receives -the outer'end of the bushing 28, with the ring 36 thereon, and into this recess is also placed a ring 43 encircling the ring 36. These rings have raceways formed in their adjacent annular faces, thesame as in the case of the bearing rings in the flywheel and around the crank pin, and into the raceway so formed are placed the rolling elements 44. The weight of the pulley by tnis arrangement is thus taken off the shaft 6 entirely.

It will now be apparent that the weight of the flywheel and pulley is borne by the bushing 28, and this is in turn carried by the plate 11, bolted to the crank case, which is secured to the framework of the motor-cycle or vehicle. The only stress borne by the shaft 6 is the twisting force due to the rotation of the parts when the engine is in operation; and it will-be further noted that the pulley outside the crank case will balance the weight of the flywheel inside, thus obviating any tendency of the plate 11 to undergo buckling or other deformation.

In order to tighten the belt which passes over the pulley 38, I employ an idler which is mounted on a'supporting plate adjustable around the axis of the shaft 6, as a center. For this purpose, I form an annular boss 45 on the outer face of the plate 11, this boss being in the center of the plate and receiving a bushing 46. The.boss and bushing.

serve as a, journal for a plate 47 which is provided with a peripheral groove 48 to house a cord or wire leading to any-suitable operatin mechanism so that the plate 47 can rea ily be shifted. Obviously I may provide the plate 47 with a boss, and form a groove in the plate 11 around the bushing 28, to receive such a boss, as an alternative method of mounting the plate 47 if desired. In either case the plate 47 is located between the plate 11 andthe driving pulley,

forms a part of the en ine structure, occupics but little space, an keeps the tightener in position to operate efliciently at all times when needed. I

The plate 47 carries a stud or spindle 49, screwed into the same or otherwise fastened thereto, and this spindle carries the idler 50 by which the actual tightening is effected. The outer section 51 of the stud 40 is reduced and screw'threaded to receive a lock nut 52, to keep the idler 50 on the stud, and

the threads on the stud also receive a coneshaped head cooperating with a flanged bushing 54 in the hub of the idler 50 to form a raceway for an anti-friction bearing. A similar flanged bushing is carried in the opposite end of the hub of the tightening pulley and forms with the relatively thicker inner end of the spindle 49 a race way for the bearing of the same description. By rotating the plate 47 through a certain angle the pulley 50 can be forced against the belt on the pulley 38 to tighten the same to any required degree and all friction is eliminated.

From the above description, it will be seen that I have produced an exceedingly compact and well-poised arrangement of parts wherein the flywheel, driving pulley and tightener are all carried by the closure plate 11, the flywheel on the inside of the crank case balancing the other parts on the outside, wherein all friction is avoided; and whereby all weight is lifted from the power shaft 6, leaving this element free from every force except torsion and making possible a power shaft of comparatively small size to receive the thrust of the piston. It will also be noted that the flywheel. pulley, idler and mounting plate therefor, are all disposed to one side of the piston rod. The combined mass of these parts is partly counteracted for igniting the fuel on the opposite side of the rod 4,, in the chamber inclosed by the extension 14. As a result the body of the cylinder and piston is disposed substantially over the center of gravity of the crank case and all the parts associated therewith, whether on the inside or the outside of the same, producing ideal conditions of equilibrium for the whole engine. This part of my invention will now be set forth.

magneto chamber, and this flange supports a bearing ring 59. A journal on the field of the magneto fits into this ring, and the armature has a spindle 61 which projects through the bushing 56 into the flywheel chamber. This spindle is to be in exact alinement with the power shaft 6, as nearly as is practicable and is driven from the crank pin 7. The opposite end of the magneto is supported by a'plate or spider 62 secured in the outer end of the extension 14 by being bolted to internal lugs 63. This spider has a central bearing opening into which is fitted the circuit breaker casing on the magneto frame at the adjacent end of the armature; and the cover 17 is preferably secured on the end of the extension by screws 64 passing through lugs 65 on the inside of the cover and engaging threaded apertures in the plate 62. Of course, the rim of the cover 17 can be threaded and made to engage corresponding threads on the end of the extension, if one wishes.

In order to insure the proper operating of the magneto whether the spindle 61 and shaft 6 be in perfect alinement or not, I connect the magneto to the crank pin by a compensating device which allows for any lateral play of the shaft and spindle. In applying the compensating device, I form a slot 66 in the end of the spindle 61 in the flywheel chamber and this slot 66 receives a bent arm 67 made preferably of spring steel and projecting from the edge of a disk 68. This arm and disk are shown as made in one piece, but I may make them in separate pieces if the latter construction should prove preferable. I mount the disk 68 on the pin 7 between the rings 18 and 19 and the nut 31 and I prefer to recess the face of the disk adjacent the bearing rings and place therein a wear ring 69. Hence if the spindle 61 and spindle 6 should ever get out of alinement, the end of the arm 67 will slide in the slot 66, radially of the spindle 61 and the rotation of the armature at the same speed as that of the shaft 6 will continue. This construction also avoids the necessity of machining, boring and finishing the parts with absolute accuracy. If the spindle 61 and 7 were connected by a rigid arm an inaccuracy of a few thousandths of an inch in the alinement of spindle 61 and 6 would produce objectionable strains. By the improved construction shown such magma strains are eliminated and such an inagcuracy is immaterial.

The plate 11 is held on the crank case by bolts 70, and perforated lugs 71 are provided on the case to secure the motor to the carrying frame. An oil cup may be formed on the plate 11 to lubricate the shaft 6, and a suitable tap, closed by a plug 7 3 may be located in the bottom of the crank case.

When my engine is mounted on the framework which is made to carry it the crank case forms a central support for the cylinder and the magneto on one side of the axis thereof balances the flywheel and pulley on the other, thus producing equilibrium as nearly as is possible under practical conditions. The magneto is always positively and accurately driven directly from the flywheel and access can be had thereto at any time by taking off the cover 17. Furthermore, I mount the magneto in the extension 14 so that the magneto can be shifted around the armature, and the advance or retardation of the spark controlled accordingly. A suitable connection to the magnets passes through the extension 14 to a suitable operating .mechanism to serve this purpose.

and the fact that no weight rests upon the shaft 6 greatly lessens the danger of this shaft ever twisting ofl or otherwise getting v broken, a thing which might possibly happen if the shaft were subjected to not only a torsional stress but a bending moment also.

To obtain access to the flywheel chamber the operator need only remove the nut 41. The pulley 38 can then be taken off likewise the plate 47, after removing the nut 37 and unscrewing the ball bearing for the pulley. The latter, by the way, may have recesses in its face filled with plugs to afford a greater degree of frictional engagement with the belt, as disclosed in my prior application, Serial No. 663,112, of November 29th, 1911. Then it is only necessary to unscrew the fastening bolts for the plate 11.

Another matter to which I desire to call attention is. the fact that the antifrictionv Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desireto protect by Letters-Patent is 1. A crank case comprising a pair of chambers in axial alinement, an extension projecting from the walls of both chambers at right angles to said axis and communicating at its inner end with one of the same and a cylinder secured to said extension.

2. A crank case including a magneto chamber having a partition separating the same from the body of the case at one end and a removable cover for the other end, a

. I bearing for the magneto armature carried by the partition, and a plate adjacent the cover having a bearing therein to support the other end of the magneto.

3. In combination, a crank case including a removable closure plate, a flywheel on one side of said plate, a driving pulley on .the other side of said plate, and a shaft carrying said flywheel and said pulley passing through said plate and supported solely by the latter.

4. The combination of a crank case having an apertured end, a bushing carried by said end and projecting through the same, a shaft from the inside of the case to the outside of the same received in said bushing, a fiy-wheel at the inner end of the shaft, a pulley at the outer end of the same, and bearings between the exterior of said bushing at opposite ends and said wheel and said pulley.

5. The combination of a plate having an aperture therein, .a bushing in said aperture projecting from both faces of the plate, a shaft passing through the bushing, wheels on its ends ad acent the plate, and separate roller bearings between said wheels and the exterior of said bushing to cause the bushing to carry the weight of the wheels independently of the shaft.

6. The combination of a crank case end wall, a bushing projecting therethrough, a shaft passing through the bushing, a

wheel on the shaft having a recess receiving one end of the bushing, and an antifriction bearing between the exterior of said end of the bushing and the Wall of the recess to cause the weight of the wheel to be borne by the bushing.

7. The combination of a bushing, means for supporting the same, said bushing hav- 8. The combination of a bushing, means for supporting the same, said bushing having a projecting flanged end, a plate be- ,tween said end and the supporting means,

and an antifriction bearing on the bushing between the flange and the plate.

9. In an engine the combination of a crank case, a flywheel inside the same adjacent one end, externally located transmission devices, a shaft secured to the flywheel and passing through the said end, said wheel having a crank pin connected to the engine piston, a magneto adjacent the opposite end of the crank case and separated from the flywheel ,by a partition, and means for connecting the magneto to be driven when the piston is in motion.

10. A crank case formed of an integral .metal body portion having a partition subdividing it into a fly-wheel chamber and a .magneto chamber, a removable end wall for the fly-wheel chamber, a shaft, a fly-wheel supported solely by said end wall, an end wall for the magneto chamber, and a magneto supported within said chamber independently of either end wall.

11. A crank case formed of an integral metal body portion having a partition subdividing it into a fly-wheel chamber and a magneto chamber, a removable end Wall for the fly-wheel chamber, a shaft, a fly-wheel supported solely by said end wall, an end wall for the magneto chamber, a magneto supported within said chamber inde endently of the last mentioned end wal and havlng its shaft projecting through said partition approximately in line with said first mentioned shaft, and driving connections between said fly-wheel and said magneto shaft and operating irrespective of lack of exact alinement of the two shafts.

12. A crank case having a body portion, including a partition substantially in a plane parallel to the plane of movement of the crank, ,a removable end wall, a shaft projecting through said end wall, a fly-wheel carried by said shaft ad'acent to but spaced from said partition, sai shaft and said flywheel being supported solely by said end wall, a magneto upon the opposite side of said partition and having its shaft projecting through the latter, and driving connections between said fly-wheel and said mag neto shaft.

13. A crank case including a body portion subdivided into two compartments in axial alinement, a fly wheel within one of said compartments, a support for said fly-wheel projecting through an outside end wall of said last mentioned compartment, and a magneto within the other compartment and having its shaft projecting through the Wall end Wall and having its shaft, projecting between said compartments. through said partition.

M. A crank case including a body por- Signed at New York city in the county of tion, oppositely disposed, removable end New York and State of New York this 4th 5 walls, a partition between said Walls subday of December A. D. 1913.

dividing said crank case into two compart- I T ments, :1 drive shaft projecting through one B' SCHICKEL of said end Walls into one of said compart- Witnesses:

ments, and a magneto supported in the other C. W. FAIRBANK, 10 compartment independently of the other FLORENCE lLEVH-JN. 

